Rapunzel
by Yami White Rain
Summary: Otogi x Yami no Yuugi x Malik. Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga... Chapter summary: Malik strikes a deal with the Pharaoh.
1. Prologue

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Warnings:** Ryuuji's dad is an abusive dick in canon and I go with that.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** A Clown, A Jester & A Pharaoh walk into a bar...

**.prologue**  
Ryuuji heard his father snapping Yuugi's neck. The sound of it wasn't very loud, but its echo seemed to overwhelm the entire room. It also made Ryuuji want to throw up.

But not as much as the low laughter coming from his father.

"You've done it, my son." Ryuuji stared down at the Dungeon Dice board. Very suddenly, he wished he had lost. The thought crawled up through him and made him feel sicker. It didn't help when he felt his father kiss the top of his head.

Usually, that was something that would make Ryuuji happy. Now, he could only think of how his father's stupid clown nose was wrecking his hair.

Ryuuji shook his head sharply a few times before kneeling on the floor to pick up the pieces of the Puzzle. "I'm going get to work on this."

* * *

Before they moved, father burned Yuugi's body. He told Ryuuji about it in great detail while they drove to Tokyo.

Ryuuji listened attentively but his hands itched for the Puzzle.

* * *

Ryuuji dropped out of school. He didn't have any practical need for school. And it would just waste valuable hours he could be spending on solving the puzzle.

The only downside was his father was less careful about beating him. Ryuuji didn't interact with anyone, so there was no need for him to hide bruises and welts.

* * *

"You know," Ryuuji said, watching his father's hands carefully, a month after they'd moved to Tokyo, "it took Yuugi eight years to solve the puzzle."

His father took a step forward. "I believe you won when you dueled Yuugi."

_At my own game when I didn't tell him all the rules_ Ryuuji didn't say as he watched his father uncoil his whip.

* * *

While Ryuuji never had any friends, really, he did enjoy being around people. He had liked flirting with girls, teasing people, and playing games.

He often wondered why he felt that way while he was locked in his room with the only light coming from the shine of the golden Puzzle pieces. It was probably, he reasoned, because it pleased his father that his son was good with people. His father no longer wanted that.

He certainly didn't hang out with people because it made him feel less lonely.

* * *

"Father made sure not to break my hands," Ryuuji told the Puzzle. Both of his legs hurt. "He knows I need them to solve you."

After he got another piece to fit, Ryuuji remembered to add, "He's also letting me eat again. I can't solve you very well when I'm passed out." He picked up another piece of the Puzzle and told it, "Though, between you and me, I didn't miss eating very much."

The Puzzle didn't have anything to say to that.

Ryuuji laughed. "The joke's on him, right?" He blinked several times at the shadows surrounding the Puzzle pieces. "I guess I should turn on the lights again."

He didn't.

* * *

Ryuuji sometimes wondered if he ever dreamed of anything but whips, dice, clown noses and golden Puzzle pieces with the echo of a neck being snapped over and over again.

* * *

Ryuuji was lying face up on the bed holding the half-way complete puzzle. "I used to think I was destined to solve you. I didn't really want the power, though. I just wanted to be part of a story that wasn't mine."

He rolled over, then he set the Puzzle on the bed. "I always thought I'd be glad to get revenge for my father." He grabbed one of the pieces out of the golden box. Even though it tried to stop being golden by surrounding itself with shadows, Ryuuji still remembered what it looked like. "Now I wonder what would have happened if Yuugi had won. I liked playing with him."

He snapped a piece into place. And another.

"It was fun."

And another.

* * *

"For my birthday," Ryuuji said, holding up a card, "I had Father buy me a Black Magician."

He took out the remaining pieces of the Puzzle - there were ten left - and set them on his desk. Then, he set the card carefully in the box. He sat down at the desk table.

"He asked me why," Ryuuji told the Puzzle. It was a good listener, so he confessed: "I said it was because it was Yuugi's favorite. He hit me. But he bought it for me."

He picked up a piece of the Puzzle and watched the shadows dance around his hand, wrist and arm. He smiled. "Does that mean he loves me?"

* * *

"One more to go," Ryuuji said, feeling giddy. "I hope we'll still talk sometimes."

He pressed the last piece - the eye that went in the middle - into the puzzle. The puzzle's light pierced through the shadows. Ryuuji's eyes colored purple. Then he took a deck of playing cards out of his desk. When he smiled, he showed his teeth, and they were sharp.

* * *

"Take off your mask."

Ryuuji's father froze. "You're not my son."

"I like to see the faces of the fools I chose to crush. Your son can't handle seeing the evil in your eyes."

"You must be the Pharaoh." Ryuuji's father attempted to take a step back. However...

"You'll find you can't walk away from this game," The Pharaoh said. "Take off your mask." He shrugged. "Sit down, if you like." He set four cards face down on the table. Then, he leaned over to grab something that was lying at his feet and slapped it down on the table.

It was a knife.

"We're going to play a game. Lying in front of me are four aces - "

"I know this game."

The Pharaoh continued as if he hadn't heard Ryuuji's father speak. "You are to turn over two. If they're not the same color, you lose and I crush your mind and soul forever."

"What if I win?"

The Pharaoh smiled. "Turn over two cards."

Ryuuji's father's hand jerked out, as if he weren't controlling it. He flipped over one card. Ace of Spades. His hand moved over to the one next to it, but before he turned it over, he slapped his other hand on top of it. "I didn't agree to this."

All the while a grin on his face, the Pharaoh grabbed the knife and shoved it through Ryuuji's father's uppermost hand. He brushed both hands away like they were offending papers on a desk and turned over the card. It was an Ace of Hearts.

The Pharaoh stopped smiling. "Mind Crush."

He watched the man fall to the ground. "You can finish him off, if you want."

Ryuuji's eyes shifted back to green. Then he stood up and walked around the table in order to look at the fallen form of his father.


	2. Chapter 1

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: Ryuuji, Yami no Yuugi in this chapter; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** The Pharaoh attempts to adjust.

**.chapter01**  
The Pharaoh looked around. "This isn't your room."

Ryuuji didn't look away from his laptop. "I ended the lease to the apartment. We're in a hotel." The Pharaoh walked over to stand behind him. "I would have burned down the place, but I really didn't want to deal with arson charges."

"What about your father?" The Pharaoh could see his reflection on the laptop screen. He still looked like Yuugi. For the first time he could remember, he wished he didn't.

"The coroner pronounced death by misadventure; he broke his neck when he fell down the stairs."

The screen was blank. Ryuuji hadn't turned the laptop on.

The Pharaoh turned away. "What are you going to do?"

"I've booked a flight to England," Ryuuji said. "Do you mind?"

"It's your body," the Pharaoh pointed out.

Ryuuji shut the laptop with a soft click. "Which reminds me, are you going to warn me next time you take over?"

"I took care of Yuugi's murderer," the Pharaoh said. He looked down at the Puzzle he was wearing. "There's nothing left I wish to do."

"What about me?"

"If I held you responsible, you would be worse than dead right now," the Pharaoh told him.

* * *

There was a new door in the Pharaoh's spirit room. Behind it was the most dangerous room of all. It contained his memories of Yuugi.

The Pharaoh could _feel_ Yuugi's presence as he stood outside of it. Fainter, he could also sense what felt like Anzu, Jounouchi and Kaiba. He wasn't able to sense Honda at all.

He wished he could. He knew Yuugi had loved him dearly. He rather suspected he would have as well if destiny had just given him a little more time.

* * *

When he'd had enough of staring at Yuugi's door, the Pharaoh stepped out of his Puzzle. He immediately regretted it when the first thing Ryuuji said was, "Why don't you hold me responsible?"

The Pharaoh folded his arms and looked down at Ryuuji, who was sitting down on the bed. His eyes were glued to the floor. "Do you have some sort of death wish?"

"In no way am I innocent in this," Ryuuji said. He still wasn't looking at the Pharaoh. And he hadn't answered the question.

* * *

The Pharaoh spent most of his time standing in front of Yuugi's door. Usually, he'd cut through Yuugi's presence and focus on one of the other three that he felt. Anzu's presence was the one bound most closely to Yuugi, so focusing on her was the trickiest, because he didn't want to think too much about Yuugi.

Yuugi, the Pharaoh knew, is - _was_ - in love with Anzu. She was his first friend. The person he trusted the most, outside of the Pharaoh himself. She was the one protected Yuugi before he'd solved the Puzzle.

She wanted to dance in America. Her favorite food was chocolate. Her parents were never really around. She generally had good grades in school. She didn't like wearing pants. She liked Disney movies and pretended she didn't like shoujo manga. Her favorite time of the year was summer. Though she knew how to duel, it wasn't something she really enjoyed a lot but she loved to watch her friends play the game.

There was probably no one in the world who had known her better than Yuugi. The Pharaoh knew everything that Yuugi had known about her. Not just facts and figures, but how he felt about her and why he loved her so much. The things that made up a person that didn't have any words.

He liked to think about the memories he'd gotten from Yuugi. He avoided thinking about the memories he'd made with her.

* * *

"I was starting to think you'd never come out of there." Ryuuji was typing something into his computer. Briefly, the Pharaoh wondered what he was doing before brushing the thought aside.

The Pharaoh moved to stand behind him once again. "If you want to see me, all you have to do is ask."

Ryuuji closed his laptop, and twisted around so that he was facing the Pharaoh. "I was thinking that since I solved the Puzzle, I must have been meant to."

There was nothing the Pharaoh was willing to say about that.

"Obviously," Ryuuji continued, as if he clearly hadn't been waiting for the Pharaoh to respond, "we're not connected - "

"You would not have been able to solve the Puzzle if we were not," the Pharaoh said. He set his hand on the Puzzle and tapped his index finger on the top of it. "It's true that our connection was forged differently. But it's still very much there."

Ryuuji's shoulders stiffened. He lifted his head to look at the Pharaoh, eyes wide and searching. "Want to give me some details on that?"

"No." The Pharaoh walked across the room to sit down on the bed. It was smaller than the one Ryuuji had before. And the bedspread was a different color, though it was still patterned in dice. "There was no connection between us for you to tap into, but you were able to build one and use that to solve the Puzzle."

"How?"

The Pharaoh looked up. There was no window on the ceiling. "By pouring yourself into me."

Ryuuji's voice was off a note or two when he said, "What exactly does that mean?"

"You used Jounouchi in attempts to break the bond we shared, manipulated my partner into a game he didn't know how to play, knowing he would be separated from me before I could step into to protect him, and I've done nothing to punish you for that." He jerked his head forward in order to stare at Ryuuji. "You're not a fool."

It only took a moment for the Pharaoh's words to sink in and for Ryuuji to take off the Puzzle, hand shaking. The Pharaoh hoped that this time when the Puzzle broke, no one would put it back together.

* * *

To say the Pharaoh was surprised when he found himself standing next to Ryuuji, who had a cardboard box on his desk and was scribbling something on a piece of paper, would have been an understatement.

"I'm going to send you back. Do you have Jounouchi's address?"

The Pharaoh couldn't stop his flinch. "No."

Ryuuji erased something on his paper. "How about Anzu's?"

"No."

Ryuuji erased something again. Then he titled his head to the side to look at the Pharaoh. "Okay, you have got to know Yuugi's address." When the Pharaoh didn't answer, Ryuuji gritted his teeth and opened up his laptop. "Fine, I'll just look it up online."

The Pharaoh moved his hand to cover Ryuuji's. The Puzzle glinted, a warning that the Pharaoh was more than willing to take over if he had to. "You are not sending me back there."

Ryuuji snapped his laptop shut louder than he usually did. "Look, I can't just send you anywhere. There are evil forces that could find the Puzzle and use it."

The Pharaoh knew those words should stir _something_ within him. They didn't. "Feel free to destroy the Puzzle. It would solve both of our problems."

"I would." Ryuuji grabbed the Puzzle in both of his hands. In doing so, his arms moved through the Pharaoh's. It felt like an awkward sort of intimacy. "But I already tried that."

* * *

The Pharaoh went back to spending most of his time standing in front of Yuugi's door.

Kaiba's presence was easiest to focus on. He wasn't as intertwined with Yuugi as Anzu and Jounouchi were. That didn't make it much easier, because somehow, it felt like Kaiba was part of the past he'd lost.

The past he'd hoped to recover with Yuugi's help.

It helped when he spent most of his time thinking about their first duel and the look in Kaiba's eyes when the Pharaoh broke his heart into millions of little pieces.

* * *

Ryuuji was lying on his bed and the Pharaoh was standing in the middle of the room. He wasn't sure why he was there, beyond the fact he was getting tired of staring at Yuugi's door and trying not to think of Yuugi.

"Do you miss dueling?" Ryuuji asked. He tossed a die he was holding up in the air and then caught it; the Pharaoh followed the die with his eyes.

"No," the Pharaoh said. It wasn't a lie, and he was surprised by that.

Ryuuji reached over to his nightstand. He grabbed the box where the pieces of the Sennen Puzzle were stored and took off the lid. He took out the card and held it up. The Pharaoh _knew_ what the card was, but that still couldn't prepare him for what it felt like when Ryuuji held it up. To look at the face of his most loyal card.

"You sure about that?" Ryuuji asked. He was smiling, and his eyes were glittering.

"Yes," the Pharaoh said and turned away. He would have asked how Ryuuji felt holding the last gift his father ever gave to him, but he could feel enough of that pain leaking through their bond to know he already knew enough.

* * *

As he spent more and more time staring at Yuugi's door, Jounouchi's spirit became more and more vivid. He wasn't sure if it was because Jounouchi had to be looking for him or because he knew exactly what Jounouchi would do to him if he found out that the Other Yuugi was giving up.

"Move," Jounouchi would say after he punched him, "and stop being such a fucking coward. Yuugi'd want - "

The Pharaoh never let himself finish that thought, even though he knew he couldn't avoid the end of that sentence forever if he kept standing still.

* * *

The Pharaoh was sitting on the ground, eyes closed with his back to Yuugi's door, the first time Ryuuji entered his spirit room. "Careful," he said, "It's dangerous in here."

The Pharaoh felt Ryuuji sit down next to him. They were close enough so their shoulders brushed. "Could you make it not dangerous?"

"I'm afraid not," the Pharaoh said.

"That's one plus for my room," Ryuuji said. There was a pause. "And about ten billion points for the coloring. Who decorated in here?"

The Pharaoh opened his eyes and looked around. He found himself smiling, a little. "Me, I suppose." Ryuuji's hair tickled against the Pharaoh's cheek. It was almost like being touched. "Our rooms are a reflection of our souls."

"Well," Ryuuji said, eyes darting around, "that really does explain a lot."

"Yes, it does."


	3. Chapter 2

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: Isis, Rishid, Malik, Kaiba, Yami no Yuugi, Ryuuji; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Notes**: Thanks to Fickle for all the help she's given to this story so far.  
**Chapter summary:** Enter Malik!

-

.**chapter02**  
Malik jerked around. "Sister. What are you doing here?"

For a moment, it looked like Isis was going to close the distance between the two of them and engulf him into a hug. "I have come to inform you that things have changed drastically."

Malik eyed the Sennen Torque she was wearing. He leaned against the table behind him and folded his arms. "I'm listening."

"The Pharaoh's," she was playing nice by not calling him _their_ Pharaoh, "host has been killed."

Malik grabbed the Rod secured to his belt loop and drew it out to hold it up in front of her. Her eyes widened slightly, but she otherwise didn't move. "That's impossible! You must be lying to me, or - "

"I assure you that I'm only telling you the truth," she told him. "Mutou Yuugi was murdered some six months ago after he lost a game to someone named Otogi Ryuuji." She walked over to him, slowly. "My Torque tells me that the Pharaoh is now inhabiting his body."

"That's impossible," Malik hissed. Isis set her hand on the side of his face. He let her. "The only one whom he can possess is the one who solves the Puzzle."

"I know that as well as you do," Isis said. She closed her eyes. Part of Malik thought she was a fool for letting her guard down, the other part of him wished she'd hug him. "My visions are only telling me so much."

Suddenly, with her eyes popping open, Isis set her hands on Malik's shoulders. "This changes everything. Brother, you can stop - "

Malik tugged free from her, knocking her arms roughly away in the process. "This changes nothing! He has a host, does he not? I don't need to change my plans at all."

"Yes you do!" Isis' voice was unusually harsh, and when Malik looked over at her, her eyes were cold and scared. "Our Pharaoh's host was murdered. That's changed him."

"I don't care," Malik snapped.

"Malik, listen," Isis said, grabbing him urgently. "I only let you get as far as you did because I knew that the Pharaoh would have compassion for you - for whatever mistakes you'll make. However, his heart is changing. I'm no longer sure that he'll do what he can to protect and spare you from whatever cruel fate destiny has in store for you." She jerked her head to the side. "I am now uncertain if he'll even _try_ to save the world from the coming darkness."

"You were a fool to ever think he had any compassion," Malik said. "But, don't worry, when I take the power from him, I'll protect the world."

Isis' grip on his shoulders tightened. "Compromise with me, brother. Come with me and we'll gather information together." Her eyes flickered with something Malik couldn't read. "Be reasonable. So many of the visions my Torque has shown me are now wrong. Don't you see how much more dangerous everything has become?"

Before he could think about what he was agreeing to, Malik nodded sharply. "For now. I shall fetch Rishid."

Isis' hands curled into the cloth covering his shoulders and she pulled him close.

* * *

Rishid took Malik's change of plan to work with Isis unblinkingly and went straight to the point by asking, "Where do you think we should start?"

"We should probably start with his family, I'll have you look up his address - "

"No, not yet," Isis said. Malik turned around to face her. "I've already arranged to meet someone who'll be of more use to us at this point, Kaiba Seto. He was Mutou's rival and he's the reincarnation of one of the Pharaoh's priests."

* * *

"This better be quick," said a tall man in a white trench coat that Malik assumed was Kaiba, "I don't have a lot of time to waste."

Isis smiled; the look in her eyes reminded Malik of the many times she pulled just the right card in order to beat him at Duel Monsters when they were children. "You are here because you are interested in what I have to say. I have a feeling you're not going to leave until your curiosity is satisfied."

Kaiba slammed his briefcase on the table. "Look, I'm not here for small talk. You said you had information on Yuugi. If you don't, I'm going to take my leave."

"I'm sure you already know that Mutou-san was killed and burned to ashes by Otogi Sindin," Isis said. She motioned for Malik set down the picture he was holding. "I'm equally sure you recall the Sennen Puzzle that he wore."

"Unfortunately," Kaiba said. "What's your point?"

"What if I told you that I knew who had it?"

Kaiba clenched his fists. "Who?"

"His son," Isis told him. "Otogi Ryuuji. If you can locate him for me, I'll tell you more."

* * *

"Where did Kaiba go?" Malik asked when Isis came back into the kitchen.

"He walked away when I started to tell him about his past life - as I suspected he would," Isis said. She held up a piece of paper. "I got Otogi's address, however."

"Why did you tell him if you knew he wouldn't believe you?" Malik asked.

"I'm not ready to play all my cards yet," Isis told him. "I shall need him again in the future."

* * *

"Let me see if I have this straight," Otogi said, tapping his index finger lightly on top of his table, "You three are tombkeepers, charged with the task of protecting the Pharaoh's secrets. Things were going according to plan," Malik didn't like the look Otogi shot him at that, "until I won the Puzzle from Yuugi."

"Yes," Isis said.

"And now I'm guessing you want to talk to the Pharaoh," Otogi said.

Isis nodded.

Otogi looked down at the Puzzle he was wearing. Malik thought he was going to say something, but instead he just touched the Puzzle. And then, he lifted his head. His eyes were now purple instead of green. And Malik could _sense_ the ancient spirit of the Pharaoh clearly. Before, it had just been a faint whiff of something that nagged in the back of Malik's mind.

Both Isis and Rishid bowed their heads. Malik wanted to smack them both hard. He settled with glaring at the Pharaoh.

"I'm assuming," the Pharaoh said, "that you wish to know exactly how Ryuuji was able solve the puzzle?"

"The thought has crossed our minds," Malik said. He could feel Isis shooting him a look and he imagined she'd probably give him an earful about it later. "Only the chosen one is able to solve the puzzle and only the chosen one can be possessed by the Pharaoh." The Pharaoh shifted in his seat slightly, so Malik pressed on, not able to stop from twitching his lips into a smirk, "And that chosen person was Mutou Yuugi."

At that, the Pharaoh flinched.

Malik was about to continue, but Isis kicked him sharply in the shins.

"What my brother means," Isis started, but the Pharaoh held up his hand.

"Your brother is correct," he said. "Ryuuji was not meant to be my partner, not like Yuugi. However," he spoke slowly, clearly choosing his words carefully, "thanks to some unique circumstances, Ryuuji was able to reach out and tap into the Puzzle's power." Suddenly, the Pharaoh turned to stare directly into Malik's eyes. "Which includes the ability to grant a wish. Ryuuji took advantage of that."

"How delightfully - " Malik gritted his teeth when Isis kicked him again, this time hard enough to hurt.

He could feel Rishid staring at him. Which, granted, wasn't entirely unusual. But, it was odd that he even noticed.

"Delightful," Isis said, "that the combination of destiny and Otogi-san's will were able to make sure that you could play your part in saving the world."

It took everything Malik had not to snort at that.

The Pharaoh had yet to look away from him since catching his gaze. "I have a feeling that Malik has something he wishes to tell me." He held out one arm. "Please, tell me."

It felt as if the temperature had dropped several degrees. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Isis' face grow pale and her eyes widen. Malik knew she wanted to interfere, but he also knew she wouldn't disobey her Pharaoh. Malik had every intention of using that to his advantage.

"You," he snapped, about to grab his Rod, but Rishid reached out and caught his wrist before he got the chance. Malik made a note to himself to deal with that mistake as soon as they were alone together. "Don't deserve the ultimate power bestowed upon you, Pharaoh."

"I see," the Pharaoh's voice was even, eyes unreadable, "Do you believe the power should rightfully be yours?"

"Yes!" Malik said. His voice didn't sound like his own. He could feel Isis' fear, and it felt intoxicating.

Rishid's grip on his wrist tightened.

"Very well," the Pharaoh said. "You may have it." He shrugged his shoulders. "I really don't have much use for it anymore."

Before anyone could respond, the Pharaoh's body grew very still. His eyes clouded over. The Puzzle shook and let out a blinding light. When Malik was able to see again, after blinking rapidly for a full minute, it was clear that Otogi had taken over.

"I think," Otogi said, "that we should continue this conversation later."

Isis stood up, grabbed Malik's other wrist and pulled him up. "I think that's a very wise idea. I believe you have my number."

"Yeah," Otogi said. "I'll call you in a couple of days."


	4. Chapter 3

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: Yami no Yuugi, Ryuuji, Mana, Mahaad, Yuugi; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Word Count**: 1,869  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** Yami no Yuugi and Ryuuji make plans to deal with Malik while Ryuuji revisits some events that happened in the past.

-

**.chapter03**  
When Ryuuji was sure that the Tomb keepers were gone, he said, "I think we need to talk, Pharaoh."

A moment later, the Pharaoh appeared in front of him.

"Do you mind telling me what the hell you're thinking?" Ryuuji asked, pacing back and forth. The Pharaoh sat down in a chair at the table. "You can't just give away ultimate power, much less to someone who doesn't appear particularly stable." He paused and turned to look at the Pharaoh. "You did pick that up on that, right?"

The Pharaoh tilted his head to the side slightly. "I did."

"And your plan is to give him power?"

The Pharaoh shook his head. "My plan is to lure him in and keep an eye on him."

Ryuuji rubbed his forehead. "I think I should set some ground rules. Rule number one being that if you plan to bring in a pet, you go over it with me first."

"We could kill him if that would be easier on you," the Pharaoh offered.

Ryuuji removed his hand from his face in order to look at the Pharaoh. His expression was serious and he'd sounded like he was offering Ryuuji reasonable solutions to a mildly complex problem. "You want to kill him?"

The Pharaoh set his hands on the arms of the chair. "I'm not especially invested in any plan on how to deal with him."

"We're talking about someone's life." Ryuuji paused to consider the fact he was playing the voice of moral reason. Then he walked swiftly over to the table and sat down across from the Pharaoh. "Look, I'm not like Yuugi. I'm not into putting my neck on the line to save the world."

The Pharaoh didn't turn around. "I'm amendable to that."

"I have a feeling that these Tomb keepers wouldn't leave us alone just because we're not interested in saving the world," Ryuuji said. "Especially Malik." He watched the Pharaoh stand up and turn around. "So, could you kill him? Not just break his mind?"

"Yes," the Pharaoh said. He studied Ryuuji's face carefully. "I would only need your body." He walked around the table so he was standing beside Ryuuji. His face was tilted to the side so he was still looking at Ryuuji. His expression and voice were surprisingly gentle when he continued, "I could make sure you wouldn't remember anything."

Ryuuji thought about asking why he didn't do that when he had challenged Ryuuji's father, but quickly dismissed that idea. "Okay. Do it."

The Pharaoh closed his eyes, nodding.

* * *

Ryuuji's soul room wasn't as expansive at the Pharaoh's. In fact, it was just one room. It had a bed in it in one corner and a shelf lined with his favorite Dungeon Dice Monsters in another corner, straight across the bed. Otherwise, it was empty.

So far, the only thing he'd done in his room so far was sleep in it, the few times he'd been in it.

Absently, he walked over to the shelf and set his hand on the Little Wizard's blue hat.

_"Not much is known about the Pharaoh," Father told Ryuuji, who was sitting on the ground, looking up at him attentively, "we don't even know his name."_

Ryuuji hoped the Pharaoh knew his own name, but he knew better than to say that out loud while his father was lecturing him.

"However, one well-known thing is that he is an excellent gamer. In fact it's the very key to his power."

Ryuuji's hand jerked away from the Little Wizard and, as if he was being pushed, he took several steps back. Eyes wide and heart beat going wild, Ryuuji kept taking steps back until the back of his legs hit the bed.

He fell back on the bed, and against his chest, the pendent thudded heavily. He looked down; had it been there before? He'd buried with his father, he remembered. He was sure of that. The pendent was a simple enough thing; his father's mask, made small, and attacked to an ankh with pointed, sharp edges.

He couldn't remember when his father had given it to him; he'd worn it for as long as he could remember, it was as much a part of him as his own heart.

Ryuuji didn't wear it anymore. He wore the Puzzle instead.

He curled his fingers around it, intending to take it off, and was thrown into another memory.

_The lighter Ryuuji was holding slipped out of his hand and landed on the floor next to the still lit candle with a soft thump. His spell had gone wrong. He had intended to move the fire from one candle to another, but the power had been too much for him to handle, and somehow he'd ended up setting his father on fire._

His father was muttering something under his breath and the green flames on his shoulders and arms slowly began to shrink. Ryuuji wanted to say he was sorry or to confirm that his father was also healing any the burns, but his voice was caught in the back of his throat. Father began to laugh lowly. The sound of it reminded Ryuuji of what his father looked like without his mask. Ryuuji dropped to the ground to pick up the lighter and wished as hard as he could that his father would stop laughing.

"Don't blow that out," Father said.

Ryuuji moved his head away from the candle and up towards his father. He set his hands on his knees.

"I want you to try and do that again," Father said. He set his hand on the handle of the whip connected to his belt loop.

Ryuuji closed his eyes tightly and tried to remember the exact words he'd chanted.

Ryuuji jerked his hand away from the pendant, as if it had burned him. Then he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.

He'd been in his soul room several times before, but this was the first time it'd ever caused flashbacks. He wasn't sure exactly what was going on and he was even less sure of how to get it to stop.

Ryuuji fell on his back, planning to stay on his bed for now, since that seemed to be the safest place in the room. However, once his head landed on the pillow, he was pulled back into his memories.

_"While you start on the Puzzle," Father said, "I'll take care of this."_

Ryuuji jerked around and watched as his father picked up the still form of Yuugi's dead body. His head was hanging oddly off of his neck. Ryuuji thought he could smell blood, even though there was none in sight. It was probably just his imagination.

Watching his father walk out of the room, Ryuuji grabbed a piece of the Puzzle and clutched it as tightly as he could. He relaxed, slightly.

Ryuuji jumped off of his bed and ran out of his room. Thankfully, when he touched his doorknob in order to open the door to get out of his room, he wasn't assaulted with any flashbacks. He didn't slam the door behind him, even though he wanted to, just in case he wasn't lucky again.

He walked across the hallway, intending to enter the Pharaoh's room, deciding any consequence would be more than worth getting the hell away from his soul room.

When he set his hand on the doorknob to the Pharaoh's room, he was pulled into a memory that wasn't his own.

_In front of Ryuuji was the Pharaoh with his back turned. Lying at his feet was the body of a teenager. Although he didn't know how, Ryuuji_ knew _the teenager wad dead. And he knew that the Pharaoh was responsible._

"Now that that's taken care of," the Pharaoh said and turned around.

The expression on his face was mischievous, like a child about to pull a prank on his best friend.

Ryuuji wanted to turn away, but found himself frozen in place. He couldn't even close his eyes.

The Puzzle around the Pharaoh's neck glowed and a moment later, he fell to his knees. "What happened? Where am I?"

It was Yuugi. Just as he twisted his body around so that he would soon face the dead body, Ryuuji was thankfully pulled out of the memory.

Ryuuji slumped against the door and closed his eyes as tightly as he could and tried to will the memory out of his head. He wrapped his hand around the doorknob tightly and slowly twisted it. He shoved the door open as hard as he could and walked into the soul room. Somehow, he was able to slam the door with even more force.

He didn't take three steps before his arm brushed across a wall, and he was dragged into another memory.

_A girl that reminded Ryuuji sharply of the Black Magician Girl twirled around, a blue wand in her hand. "I just mastered the best spell ever, Atemu!"_

That must be his real name_, Ryuuji thought and filed it in the back of his mind as he focused on the scene in front of him._

There was a tall man who was standing in the back of the room, head buried in some books. He lifted his head up sharply, "Mana! You can't say his name!" He stood up, hands braced against the table. "I know that you know - "

A man who must have been the Pharaoh, judging by his hair, held up his hand. His eyes were sparkling and he was smiling gently. "It's quite all right, Maahad."

Mana literally jumped into his arms. "I knew you wouldn't change just because you became the Pharaoh."

"Just became the Pharaoh?_" Maahad rubbed his forehead. "The Pharaoh isn't the only who hasn't changed."_

Ryuuji was careful not to touch anything as he followed the path he took the last time he was in the Pharaoh's soul room. He wanted to go back to the door that was behind the Pharaoh's back when he'd met up with him in this room. He had a feeling he'd get something important from that.

He justified his actions by telling himself that Atemu knew some of his secrets, so it was only fair that he'd get some of the Pharaoh's as well.

When he got to the door, he walked over to it. Narrowing his eyes, he set the tips of his fingers on the door and was, once again, drawn into a memory that wasn't his own.

_Yuugi was lying on a bed, and the Pharaoh was sitting on the edge of it. The way the Pharaoh was looking at Yuugi seemed oddly intimate. Ryuuji was starting to feel a little guilty, but there was nothing he could about it now._

"You should get some rest, partner," the Pharaoh said.

Yuugi turned over to his side. "I'm not sure I can when you're feeling so down."

The Pharaoh's eyes widened slightly. Then he shook his head. "I feel just fine, Yuugi."

Yuugi grabbed a handful of his Black Magician printed blanket and bowed his head. "I can tell when you're lying."

The Pharaoh set his hand on Yuugi's shoulder.

Before Ryuuji could find out what he was going to say, he was shoved out of the memory and landed on the floor on his back. He was able to move his elbows to balance himself so that his head didn't bang against the ground.

Ryuuji looked around the room, wondering what had happened, but he appeared to be alone. Then, head dropping to the side, passed out.


	5. Chapter 4

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: Yami no Yuugi, Malik, Yami no Malik; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** Attempted murder as foreplay, baby.

-

**.chapter04**  
Once he was sure that he was in complete control of the body and that Ryuuji wouldn't remember what was going to happen, the Pharaoh plotted.

* * *

"Pharaoh," Malik said, his eyes flashing, after the Pharaoh grabbed his arm from behind and twisted him around, "what are you doing here?"

"I was quite serious about giving you my power - " The Pharaoh pointed to his Puzzle with his spare hand, "- and I thought it would be easier if we did this alone. My host is even locked away, so he won't interfere."

Malik pulled away and took a few steps backwards. "I wasn't born yesterday; this must be some sort of trick."

"I don't have anything of worth to fight for," the Pharaoh said, "And I don't care to act as if I do. Of course, I can't quite _give_ you the power. You must win it in a game."

Malik reached into his pocket and grabbed his deck. It took more than the Pharaoh would like to admit to will himself not to flinch. "So we'll duel?"

The Pharaoh shook his head. "I no longer duel." He ignored the way Malik was looking at him and cupped his Puzzle with his hands. "We're going to play a different Shadow Game instead." Before Malik could say a word, the Pharaoh summoned the shadows. Whips of black and purple smoke began to surround them.

The Pharaoh could feel the Rod's reaction, pouring itself into summoning the shadows as well. This would make things more difficult than if the Pharaoh were summoning the shadows alone, but he'd already suspected this would happen and had prepared for it.

"So," Malik said when the two of them were so completely surrounded by the shadows that nothing of the outside world was visible, "what game are we going to play?"

The Pharaoh was about to respond, but before he could, Malik began to act strangely. His shoulders tensed, head dropped, and his arms began to hang awkwardly at his sides. His eyes flashed over so that they were completely black for a moment. And when he took a step forward towards the Pharaoh, his movements seemed completely inhuman.

"I should thank you for that, Pharaoh." Crackles of energy began to surround his face.

"For what?" the Pharaoh asked. He stood his ground even though he wanted to be as far away from the creature in front of him as possible.

Malik's entire body twitched and he fell on his knees.

The Pharaoh took cautious steps forward, not unlike how one would approach a dangerous beast. "Malik? What happened?"

"Nothing," Malik spit as he rose to his feet quickly, but unsteadily. Rocking forward slightly on the balls of his feet, he said, "Now tell me what game we're going to - "

Veins began to throb on Malik's cheek and, once again, his eyes became completely black. The Pharaoh was standing close enough to him so that he could reach over and grab the shirt the Pharaoh was wearing. He curled the material around his fingers and set his forehead on the Pharaoh's shoulder.

"Tell me what's going on," the Pharaoh said as he took a few steps backwards to keep his balance, his voice snapping much like the crackles of energy that had been around Malik's face just a few minutes ago.

"I don't -" Malik started, his nails digging painfully into the Pharaoh's skin and voice croaking and hardly above a whisper.

Once again, Malik's shoulders stiffened and energy that reminded the Pharaoh of lightening began to surround his whole body.

_Inhuman_, the Pharaoh thought, _doesn't even begin to describe this._

Malik - or, rather the thing controlling Malik - lifted his head. The bulging veins were back, the Pharaoh noted, and his hair seemed to grow bigger as he was shoved onto the ground.

"What game are you planning for us?" The thing that wasn't Malik asked. His laughter seemed to pierce the shadows and the very sound of it rung painfully in the Pharaoh's ears.

The Pharaoh stood up. "I have nothing planned for _you_."

The thing that wasn't Malik grabbed the Rod and held it up. More energy crackled around him and his lips twitched into something that was technically a smile, but looked nothing like one. "I was hoping that you would say that."

The Pharaoh wanted nothing more than to look away. He didn't. "What do you mean?"

The Rod glowed and the thing that wasn't Malik laughed once more. "Watch, Pharaoh," he said and he began to move through the shadows in a way that reminded the Pharaoh of a cat. But even that wasn't quite right. It was more like he was _part_ of the shadows.

Watching him move made the Pharaoh's body freeze. He couldn't move, no matter how much he wanted to. So he stood there, helpless, as the thing that wasn't Malik walked around him so that he was standing just behind the Pharaoh.

He leaned forward, and he was so close the Pharaoh could feel his breath brushing across the back of his neck, "You just might learn something."

The Pharaoh felt the tip of the Rod being pressed against the line of his jaw.

"You've done this before, haven't you?" The creature asked.

"I would hardly challenge Malik if I didn't know what I was doing," the Pharaoh said. He'd planned to turn around, but the thing that wasn't Malik caught his wrist with his hand tightly enough to bruise.

Ryuuji was stronger than Yuugi, but he wasn't stronger than the thing that wasn't Malik. So, even though the Pharaoh attempted to break free of the thing that wasn't Malik's grasp, he was unsuccessful.

Except in making the thing that wasn't Malik chuckle.

"I think it's time you get a taste of your own medicine," the thing that wasn't Malik said, his voice a hiss, and breath, once again, brushing across the back of the Pharaoh's neck.

"In order to do that," the Pharaoh said as he dug his fingers into his palm in order to stop himself from crying out from the jolts of pain running up the arm of the wrist that was being held by the thing that wasn't Malik. It was easier than he expected, thanks to Ryuuji's high tolerance of pain. Still, it hurt enough that that he forgot what he was going to say.

"In order to do what?" The thing that wasn't Malik murmured as he traced the edge of the tip of the Rod down further down the side of the Pharaoh's face, towards his lips. The metal was cool and it made the Pharaoh shiver.

"You'd have to defeat me in some sort of game," the Pharaoh said, jerking his head aside in an attempt to get away from the Rod. He only ended up brushing his head against the side of the thing that wasn't Malik's face.

"Yes, you are the king of games," the thing that wasn't Malik said thoughtfully. Then he let go of the Pharaoh and shoved him forward. The Pharaoh used that momentum to twist around so that he could stand face to face with the thing that wasn't Malik.

"Then let's play a game, shall we, _my_ Pharaoh?"

The Pharaoh folded his arms. "I'm listening."

"It's simple," The thing that wasn't Malik held up his Rod. Three cards appeared between them, the back of them to the Pharaoh. "I shall turn two of these cards around. You'll have to guess the third."

The Pharaoh began to rub the index and thumb fingers of his uninjured hand together. "I'll accept your challenge."

The first card, on the far left, turned around. On it was a picture of a girl who looked like a brown-haired, brunette Black Magician Girl. Next, the card on the far right turned around. The man pictured there reminded the Pharaoh of the Black Magician. However, beyond these similarities the Pharaoh had no clue as to who they were, nor any idea what the third card would picture.

However, he didn't need to know the answer.

It struck him then that he was about to both bow out of a game and cheat. Not long ago, he never would have thought of doing such a thing. But now, what he was planning on doing didn't even leave a bad taste in his mouth. He wasn't sure if it was because of Ryuuji's influence or the lack of Yuugi's.

He could feel shadows twisting again to his arm and chest, hot enough so that it was burning the skin. He hoped that if it left a mark, Ryuuji would appreciate the position he was in enough not to hold the damage to his skin against the him.

"Well, Pharaoh? Do you have an answer?"

"Yes," the Pharaoh said. He closed his eyes. In order for what he was planning to work, he needed to create heat. He hoped that the friction created from moving bits of the shadows against each other would count for it. He jerked out his hand, and a line of green fire shot across and onto the thing that wasn't Malik's chest, causing him to fall to the ground in a dead faint.

It took less than minute for the shadows created by the Rod to disappear. The cards showing the pictures of the two people shown to him were the last thing to fade away. The Pharaoh fixed his eyes on the spot where they had been as he made the shadows he'd created disappear.

He closed his eyes and quickly worked to give Ryuuji access to his body once more before he fell to the ground, only about a yard away from where Malik's body lay.


	6. Chapter 5

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: Malik, Ryuuji, Yami no Yuugi ; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Notes**: Sorry this took so long! I'd written it weeks ago but things have come up. But I was too impatient to keep waiting. Let's hope I caught all the typos.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** Ryuuji and the Pharaoh haven't figured out the merits of good cop/bad cop yet.

* * *

**  
.chapter05**  
When he woke up he was lying face down on the ground. As he stood up, the first thing that caught Ryuuji's attention was his left arm. The wrist was bruised and the inside of it had some sort of burn on it. The second thing he noticed was Malik, lying in front of him.

_It seemed that our plan didn't work_, Ryuuji thought with some relief. He hadn't been completely comfortable with the choice he'd made and when he saw the memory of the Pharaoh killing in one of those flashbacks, he'd begun to regret the choice almost completely.

As Malik began to stir, Ryuuji attempted to reach the Pharaoh through their connection to no avail. He settled for watching Malik stand up and schooled his face so Malik wouldn't guess that he was alone.

"You're not the Pharaoh," Malik said.

"The eyes give it away, I'm told," Ryuuji said.

Malik narrowed his eyes and took a step forward. "I was just about to duel with the Pharaoh. Then something... happened. Where is he?"

"He changed his mind," Ryuuji said. He shrugged. "He can be fickle like that. I blame the whole being a god on earth thing back in his past life."

"He can't just _change his mind_", Malik snapped. "I demand to speak with the Pharaoh!"

"That's too bad for you," Ryuuji said, "because he's not interested in talking to you." He was about to make a joke about getting a restraining order when Malik took another step forward, his eyes gleaming.

"You can't reach him, can you?" Malik asked. "Whatever happened before I passed out must have affected him as well."

Realizing he didn't really have a didn't have a convincing lie, Ryuuji admitted, "Your guess is as good as mine." Weighing his options quickly, he continued, "Look, I'm not really in the mood to be kidnaped or anything, so why don't I just take you to my place and we'll wait for the Pharaoh to wake up together."

Malik shot him 'you're kidding me' look.

"Come on," Ryuuji said, motioning his hand forward, "I'm one of the good guys now. We don't trick people."

"Fine." Malik took out his rod. "But if you make one wrong move, you'll regret it."

* * *

Ryuuji was in luck; he and Malik only had to stare at each other awkwardly at the kitchen table before the Pharaoh came to.

_You better take over_, Ryuuji told him, _since it's you who can answer the questions._

_Yes_, the Pharaoh said. He sounded tired through their link. Ryuuji hoped he was clear headed enough not to mess this up.

It was surreal experience to be standing next to his own body.

"What happened?" Malik snapped before the Puzzle had even stopped glowing, as it always did when they switched bodies.

"Something possessed you," the Pharaoh told him, "or something within you came out. I'm not sure just yet."

_Is that the truth?_ Ryuuji asked.

_Yes_, the Pharaoh said.

Malik's eyes flashed. "You're lying!"

"Believe what you want," the Pharaoh said, looking directly into Malik's eyes "but you're not leaving until I find out exactly what happened to you."

_What?_ Ryuuji and Malik snapped together.

The Pharaoh was clearly speaking to them both when he said, "You heard me."

Malik braced his hands on the edge of the table and stood up. "What makes you think you can keep me here?"

"Try me." The Pharaoh didn't move an inch. Malik reached over to grab his rod. "Bring in the shadows again and the thing that possessed you may come out again. I will not be able to guarantee your survival if that happens."

_You know, that's a tad hypocritical of you_, Ryuuji said as he rolled his eyes.

_Perhaps_, the Pharaoh acknowledged, _but he doesn't know that._

Ryuuji inclined his head to the right so he was looking at the Pharaoh instead of Malik. _Are you always like this?_

The Pharaoh didn't answer.

Malik looked worried, for a moment before his lips twitched into a smirk. "How exactly do you intend to keep me to stay, Pharaoh?"

_Which of your binding spells would you recommend?_ The Pharaoh asked Ryuuji. His eyes never left Malik's.

_You know my magic?_ Ryuuji pondered pointing out he hadn't even _agreed_ to this before deciding it would probably be fruitless. Besides that, he was a little curious about what had happened and what the Pharaoh had planned.

_Yes._

Ryuuji decided he'd rather not know exactly how much of his life the Pharaoh knew about. At least, for now. _Use the spell that ties him up to bind him to the chair_, Ryuuji said.

* * *

"So you're just going to leave him down there, tied to the chair so soften him up or something?" Ryuuji asked. They were in his room and he was back in his own body again.

The Pharaoh was standing in front of the window, looking outside. "That, and I sensed you had something you wanted to tell me."

Somehow Ryuuji didn't think _I went into your soul room and seemed to have accidentally - mostly - seen some of your memories_ would go over well. It wasn't that he was scared, not exactly, it was more like he'd rather be safe than sorry. And it was always best to keep _some_ of your cards close to your chest. Even more so when you didn't even know how many were already revealed.

He sat up straight in the desk chair. "I know your name."

The Pharaoh twisted around so quickly that watching him made Ryuuji feel a little dizzy. "What?"

"Is your name?" Ryuuji asked innocently. It took everything he had not flip his hair.

The way the Pharaoh glared at him, more than anything so far, convinced Ryuuji that, yes he had been an all-powerful Pharaoh three thousand years ago. "No." If it had been anyone else, they probably would have taken a step forward, but the Pharaoh just stood there like he _knew_ that he was more than menacing enough. From the way Ryuuji's palms were sweating, the the notion wasn't without merit. "Not at all."

That pulled Ryuuji from his fear for a moment. "You're not even a little curious?"

"No."

Ryuuji cocked an eyebrow. "How does that even work?"

"I think we should go back to working on Malik," the Pharaoh said.

"The body is all yours," Ryuuji replied.

* * *

"Untie me!" Malik snapped as the Pharaoh walked into the kitchen.

"I'm going to call your sister," the Pharaoh said, as if Malik hadn't said anything. Ryuuji resigned himself to keeping the Pharaoh's pet around for awhile. "And tell her that you'll be staying with us for the time being." Malik began to laugh. His entire body was overtaken by it, possessed by it. It wasn't a good look for him. The Pharaoh rose an eyebrow. "Is there anything you'd like me to tell her?"

Malik just laughed.

_I think_ Ryuuji told the Pharaoh, _that he doesn't believe that will work. It's pretty obvious he doesn't like you._

_I've already taken that into account_, the Pharaoh told him.

Malik was still laughing when the Pharaoh grabbed the cell phone on the kitchen counter. Ryuuji had entered Isis' phone number and it appeared that the Pharaoh was pulling it up. Ryuuji walked over to sit across from where Malik was sitting at the table.

"Keep an eye on him for me," the Pharaoh said as he began to walk out of the kitchen.

As Ryuuji nodded, Malik's laughter died down. "Who are you talking to?"

"Who do you think?" The Pharaoh asked, not bothering to turn around. "My host."

Malik's eyes flickered around the room, trying to pinpoint Ryuuji. But, it was pointless. The only one who could see Ryuuji was the Pharaoh.

"What do you plan to tell my sister?" Malik asked. He began to struggle against the ropes binding him to the chair once more. Ryuuji knew it was to no avail, though. Only he or the Pharaoh could remove the ropes.

"Do you think me a fool?" the Pharaoh asked. This time he did turn around.

"Was this always your plan?" Malik hissed, jerking forward. "What use of it is to you to keep me tied up like this?"

"I told you already," the Pharaoh said. "I want to know what possessed you when we were in the shadows. I'll find it." The Pharaoh turned around again and began to walk out of the kitchen once more, "And I'll destroy it."


	7. Chapter 6

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Genre**: Cracked out AU where everyone goes insane  
**Character/Pairing**: ; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** Otogi changes the stakes.

**.chapter06**  
"Are you just going to keep me tied up forever?" Malik snapped when the Pharaoh returned from talking with his sister.

"Not if you cooperate," the Pharaoh said. He held up his cell phone. "Your should take some lessons from you sister."

Malik narrowed his eyes. "What did you tell my sister?"

The Pharaoh smirked. "Play nice for awhile and maybe I'll tell you."

"You are a sadist," Malik said, gritting his teeth and turning his head to look at the top of the table.

"You didn't pick up on that when he tied you up?"

"Otogi," Malik acknowledged. "Where did the Pharaoh go?"

"He's done with you for now," Otogi said. Malik heard him walking to the table. The legs of a chair scrapped gently against the ground as he pulled it out. "He's not really a people person."

"I never would have guessed," Malik muttered. He struggled against the ropes again. It was mostly a token effort. Then he lifted his head to look at the Pharaoh's new host. "Can you get me out of these?"

Otogi twirled a strand of his hair with his index finger. "A better question would be why would I release you."

Malik gritted his teeth and glared at Otogi.

"You must be hungry," Otogi said. "What do you like to eat?"

Part of Malik wanted to say he wasn't going to eat anything from him at all. But he knew that realistically he wasn't sure how long he'd be stuck with the Pharaoh and his host. It would be a bad idea just to skip eating, as much as it would hurt his pride to accept.

"I don't care," Malik said.

* * *

During the middle of the night, the Pharaoh returned. He sat across from him at the table.

"Are you going to make me sleep sitting up?" Malik asked. When the Pharaoh didn't respond, Malik sighed. "I wish your other host was still alive. I heard he - " He paused when he say the Pharaoh flinch.

Malik held in a nasty smile. "So what exactly did happen to Yuugi?"

The Pharaoh's eyes flashed. "Nothing that concerns you."

"I beg to differ," Malik said. "My fate was connected to his until he died. I spent my entire life preparing for it. I think I have the right to know what happened."

The Pharaoh slammed his hand against the top of the table. "You're wrong."

Malik's eyes lidded as he leaned forward. "Have I touched a nerve, Pharaoh?"

Malik was both delighted and frustrated when the Pharaoh retreated into his puzzle.

Otogi blinked a few times. "That was unexpected." Otogi turned to look at him. "What exactly did you say to him?"

Malik didn't respond right away. Instead, he calculated the risks and benefits of telling the Pharaoh's host. Keeping in mind that the Pharaoh might tell Otogi what had happened and this might be a good way to get some more information on Yuugi in one way or another, he said, "I asked him about his former host."

Otogi's hands were on the table so Malik was able to see him clench his fists. His face also grew several shades paler. His voice was softer, harder than he'd heard Otogi speak before, "Trust me, you really shouldn't do that again."

Malik leaned back in his chair as best as he could. "Why not? His reaction was amusing."

"If you think he went back into the Puzzle because you'd scared him somehow, then you're more stupid than I originally had assumed," Otogi said. His eyes flashed and he moved forward. Malik felt his palms grow clammy. "You should also keep in mind that Yuugi isn't exactly a happy subject for me either. And the spell he used to bind you he got from me."

Malik was suddenly reminded of Isis' warning about the change in the Pharaoh's heart. "My sister is worried about the Pharaoh."

Otogi closed his eyes. "She probably should be."

Interesting. He appeared to be worried as well. "Perhaps we could trade some information."

Otogi opened his eyes and tapped his chin. "What makes you think I can trust you?"

"Nothing," Malik admitted. "But what other leads do you have?"

Without any warning, Otogi's eyes glassed over for a moment. "The Pharaoh can't hear us. You talk first. And don't think I'm untying you."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Malik muttered under his breath. "What exactly do you want to know?"

"What secrets does your family protect?" Otogi asked.

_That was straight to the point_, Malik thought. "Our family guards many. But they all pretty much relate to helping the Pharaoh complete his destiny."

"Which probably has something to do with his past, right?" Otogi asked.

Malik nodded.

Otogi tapped his index finger on the top of the table for a few minutes. Then, he moved to look at Malik in the eye. "So, what do you want to know from me?"

"Why are you worried about the Pharaoh?" Malik said, keeping his voice even.

"His other self is dead," Otogi said dryly, "he's taking it about as well as you'd expect."

_One vague answer for another_ Malik thought and the two of them spent the rest of the night staring at each other in a stalemate.

* * *

"Your sister," the Pharaoh said sometime just before noon, "and Rishid are in an undisclosed location. Everything you own is with them."

"I thought I hated you before," Malik snarled and nearly kicked the legs of the table, "but I realize I just had a mild disliking for you then. Now I hate you."

"I'll be sure to tell him that next time we talk," Otogi said as he walked to the refrigerator.

"What is he planning?" Malik asked.

"I have no clue," Otogi said. "What do you want to eat?"

"I don't care," Malik said and pondered the merits of a hunger strike. As he watched Otogi get some green peppers out of the refrigerator, he quickly decided he'd rather not spend another few hours just starting at Otogi, so went right to the point, "Where is my Rod?"

"I don't think the Pharaoh would want you to know," Otogi said.

"So he's the one in charge here?" Malik asked, watching Otogi get a knife out of a drawer.

Otogi snorted and began to chop the green pepper. "As if I really want you to have a brainwashing relic at your disposal. I'm not stupid."

"Okay," Malik said, trying another tactic. "Let's pretend for a moment that I believe that there was something possessing me back when I was playing a Shadow Game with the Pharaoh and that his goal is to kill it. How exactly does tying me up here help him achieve his goal?"

"To be honest," Otogi said as he got some rice out of the cabinet just above his head, "I have no idea. He's not really the talky sort."

"Then why not just kill me and be done with it?" Malik asked. The words came out more bitter than he'd intended.

The box of rice Otogi was holding slipped out of his hand.

"Did I give you an idea?" Malik asked as he watched Otogi kneel down and start to clean up the scattered rice on the floor.

"Not exactly," Otogi said. Then, quite suddenly, he stood up walked over to Malik, and undid the magical binds.

"What are you doing?" Malik asked.

Otogi couldn't answer because just as suddenly as Otogi made an about-face and untied him, he was gone and the Pharaoh was in his place.


	8. Chapter 8

**Rapunzel  
By**: White Rain  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own Yuugiou.  
**Character/Pairing**: Yami no Yuugi, Ryuuji, Malik, Yami no Bakura; Ryuuji/Yami no Yuugi/Malik overall.  
**Notes**: Much thanks to Fickle who helped in preparation for this manuscript (i.e. she wrote parts of it).

Internet cookies for anyone who can pick up the fairly obscure reference.  
**Summary**: Let's pretend that Otogi won the Dungeon Duel Monsters game with Yuugi back in manga...  
**Chapter summary:** Malik strikes a deal with the Pharaoh.

-  
**.chapter07**  
Somehow, Ryuuji had sealed off communication between the two of them, so the Pharaoh had no way of asking what exactly was going through his mind. Yuugi wouldn't have known how to do it, so it made the Pharaoh miss him for all the wrong reasons.

"What's going on?" Malik demanded. It was odd that he hadn't fled the kitchen or even gotten out of the chair he'd been bound to. The Pharaoh wrote it off as childish pride.

The Pharaoh folded his arms. "I'm afraid you'd have to ask Ryuuji to get that answer."

Malik rolled his shoulders. "You share a brain, I'm sure you have some clue about what's running through his head."

"I have ideas," the Pharaoh said to him.

The Pharaoh watched as Malik rolled his shoulders again and then followed it up with a roll of his eyes, "And those ideas are...?"

"None of your business." If it weren't for the fact that his voice is slighter deeper than Ryuuji's, the Pharaoh might have wondered if they'd switched back without him noticing. It sounded like the sort of thing that Ryuuji would say but no, he had said it. Perhaps the two of them really were spending too much time together if they sounded alike even with the link closed.

However, it wasn't worth pondering too deeply on, at least at the moment, since it wasn't something he could change.

"If it's about me, then it is my business," Malik snapped.

On the tip of his tongue was a quip about Malik needing a nap. The Pharaoh closed his eyes tightly and rubbed them. He could feel Malik watching him, as if he knew that the Pharaoh wasn't quite himself. The Pharaoh wasn't sure if he was feeling paranoid or if he was just as on guard as he always would be with an enemy -

Getting an idea, the Pharaoh walked briskly over to the table and sat down across from Malik. "I have no quarrel with you."

"Which is exactly why you tied me up for over a day, took away all my stuff," Malik's voice shifted, became angry in a way the Pharaoh hadn't heard before, "And hid my sister and Rishid away from me,"

The Pharaoh felt a little uncomfortable at that. Yuugi's influence, perhaps. There was no reason to believe Malik felt sincere about missing his family, not from what Isis had told him. Not if he was wrong about the thing that wasn't Malik, and the Pharaoh was certain that he wasn't.

"I have my reasons for that," the Pharaoh paused at the look Malik gave him, and amended his statement, "reasons that, perhaps, would have gone over better if I had been more truthful with you."

Malik leaned back. "Go on, then."

"Something did possess you," the Pharaoh said, "or maybe it's something within you, as your sister believes." Malik's eye flashed, but he said nothing. "She believes Rishid contained it best. I still think it would be best destroyed and I have the best chance of doing it."

"Otogi was right about how being treated as a god in your post life turned you into a massive prick."

"Rishid was doing nothing to halt your dangerous choices," the Pharaoh said sharply, making Malik glare at him. "How many people have you killed since you left the tomb?"

"Why do you care?"

The Pharaoh had never liked to turn down a challenge. He still didn't. However, on that front, there was no answer he could give Malik.

Malik stood up. "I have no reason to stay."

"Go ahead," the Pharaoh pointed at him, "I'll be monitoring you."

Malik walked around the table and stood behind the chair the Pharaoh was sitting on. He set his hands on the Pharaoh's shoulders. The Pharaoh tried to shove the thing that had possessed Malik out of his mind with little success. "So, do you want to save the world, Pharaoh?"

"I don't care about the world," the Pharaoh said. He pushed his friends and Ryuuji out of his mind. "I'm only interested in killing the thing that possessed you in the Shadow Realm."

Malik leaned over. The Pharaoh wondered if he did have memories of what happened between them in the Shadows. "How do you plan to do that, _my_ Pharaoh?"

The Pharaoh did not shrug him off, as much as he wanted to. "Do you expect me to tell you my moves in advance?"

"If there really is something possessing me," Malik tapped a finger on the Pharaoh's shoulder, "I would want to get rid of it myself." He laughed. It sounded nothing like the laughter of the thing that possessed him. The Pharaoh felt something that he wasn't stupid enough to deny was fear melt away but kept his body stiff. He hated that he'd let Malik get to him, but he wasn't about to waste this opportunity for later use. "Perhaps we should work together."

"I'll no more give you my secrets than you'll give me yours," the Pharaoh said. Malik's hair brushed against the back of his neck. "However, that doesn't mean we can't work together."

"Might as well," the change in his voice was sudden. He sounded like the fifteen year old kid he was. "I don't have anywhere else to go."

-

"Why couldn't you just bring in a stray cat like a normal person." Ryuuji paused, and the Pharaoh suspected he was reflecting on the fact he was ranting at him while he was a spirit. "Didn't you ancient Egyptians love cats?"

"The only thing I know about ancient Egypt is what Yugi picked up in school," the Pharaoh said tartly, "He tended to fail history."

Ryuuji looked surprised. "Didn't you guys look up some stuff when you found out you where a pharaoh?"

At first, Yuugi had been eager to research. But, once they both got an inkling of what may happen if they got to close to why they had the Puzzle, the Pharaoh had remarked he no longer cared about it, not wanting to hurt Yuugi. That had been a lie.

Now, he honestly didn't care.

"…Do you want to know anything?" Ryuuji asked in the same exact careful tone he'd used around his father when he knew he was close to being hit.

Obviously, he was thinking about the fact he knew the Pharaoh's name and, quite possibly, how he'd gathered that information. The Pharaoh looked away from Ryuuji, and tried to shove Sindin's face out of his mind. "No."

"We probably shouldn't leave Malik alone for very long."

The Pharaoh was glad for a change of subject. "You're right." He touched the Puzzle in order to switch places with Ryuuji. "I think he likes you better." He caught sight of his usual body in one of Ryuuji's mirrors. He still only saw Yuugi.

Ryuuji twirled a strand of hair as he began to walk out of the bedroom. "I have no idea what would give you that idea, Pharaoh."

-

Ryuuji plopped down next to Malik on the couch. "What are you watching?"

"I'm not sure," Malik said. "My English isn't good enough to follow very well."

The Pharaoh turned his attention to the TV screen. There was a police box involved, and an old man talking about time travel. It occurred to him, for the first time, he could speak the several languages Ryuuji had had drilled into him throughout his childhood.

"Doctor Who," Ryuuji said. He picked up the remote control and began to flip through the channels. "It's a ridiculous show and only serves to prove why Americans do TV better."

"I thought that was cinema," Malik said, eyes glued to the constantly changing channels.

"Not since the British Empire fell for good," Ryuuji said with a snort.

Malik relaxed a little against the couch after Ryuuji found something he was willing to watch. The Pharaoh saw no need to stay, so he retired back into his Puzzle.

-

Bakura, lying back on Ryuuji's bed, tossing one of Ryuuji's die up and down, ruined the Pharaoh's plans for a quiet night.

"What are you doing here?"

Bakura smiled, showed his teeth. "Why, Pharaoh, that's hardly hospitable of you. I traveled a long way to pay you a visit."


End file.
